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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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I handed Rue to Milia.
“Don’t touch people’s ears without permission. Play with Rue.”
“Really? Yay!”
“What? The auction? I want to go too!”
“We’re not going for fun. Besides, you have homework, right? Have you finished it?”
“Uh…”
Karina had been giving her homework every day, so Milia must have some left. Milia glanced at Karina and opened her notebook. Was she trying to finish it now?
I chuckled as I watched her diligently scribbling with her pen.
She’s cute.
“I’ll finish it quickly, so wait for me!”
“You’ll be in trouble if you rush through it.”
“I’ll, I’ll do it properly!”
It looked like she was just scribbling randomly. Curious, I moved closer to see what she was writing. I saw unfamiliar equations.
Wait, is this really the game I barely remember? I was a liberal arts major, so I had already forgotten all my math. I could barely remember anything beyond basic arithmetic.
Anyway, they use Arabic numerals here too.
Come to think of it, it wasn’t that strange. This world had borrowed many things from reality.
Even the metric system was used without question. It made it easier for me to adapt.
If it was yards and pounds, I would have gritted my teeth and forced the metric system upon this world!
“The auction starts at night, so don’t rush.”
“The auction… Wouldn’t it be dangerous?”
“Don’t worry too much. I’ll be with you.”
“But still…”
Karina looked at Milia with concern. She was worried that Milia, who was always full of energy, would cause trouble there. I felt a strange sense of longing as I watched her. I must have been someone’s concern when I was younger, though I couldn’t remember.
Was it inevitable, considering the gap of at least ten years? It was a bit bittersweet.
As I was reminiscing about my blurry past, Karina turned her gaze to me.
“Do you have something to say?”
“Your expression is dark. Are you feeling unwell?”
“No, I was just thinking about old memories that I can’t quite recall.”
“Old memories?”
“I can’t remember them clearly anymore.”
It was something I had been thinking about for a long time.
My past, before I possessed this body, was strangely hazy. And the knowledge of the game was surprisingly clear.
What was going on?
I couldn’t shake the suspicion that something, or someone, had interfered with my memories. I had no evidence, just a hunch…
“I don’t know why, but I can’t remember much from before the, uh, shipwreck. Come to think of it, it’s been like that since I first woke up on the island.”
“Hmm… Could it be amnesia?”
“Perhaps.”
“If you remember anything, please tell me. I’ll help you find your past!”
“Thank you.”
“Me too! I’ll help too!”
Milia chimed in, raising her hand. Karina and I both chuckled at her puppy-like enthusiasm, wanting to be included in our conversation.
“Alright, just finish your homework first.”
“Okay…”
What’s your problem?
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“It’s a cat!”
“I have a name, you know! It’s Sif!”
“Can I touch your ears?”
“No!”
“Hmph.”
Milia, who wanted to touch Sif’s ears, and Sif, who wanted to avoid being touched, were engaged in a silent battle with me in the middle. To be precise, it was a one-sided battle, with Sif being the only one on guard.
Milia jumped for joy at my words and hugged Rue tightly. Rue, realizing that resistance was futile, simply let out a whimper as it was embraced.
“Don’t put it on a leash.”
If she did that here, it would attract a lot of attention. I didn’t want to cause a scene, especially with these two already drawing attention just by being with me.
“Uh, uhm, ah…”
“Elisa, relax.”
Was it because this was her first time at the auction? Or was it because there were so many people? Elisa was clinging to my sleeve, trembling like a frightened puppy.
At this rate, we would have to turn back before even entering the auction. I took Elisa’s hand and met her gaze.
“Don’t worry. I’ll destroy anyone who tries to hurt you.”
“What about me?”
“You too.”
“Hey, that’s mean!”
What’s that supposed to mean?
I sighed inwardly as I looked at Milia, who was pouting. I wasn’t her father, so why was I going through this? Was this what it felt like to have a daughter? As I was lost in strange thoughts, I watched Sif talking to the guard at the entrance of the auction.
“Oh, you’re here. What’s the password?”
“The price of Euphras today is three silver coins.”
“Okay, you’re good. Don’t cause any trouble. Things are a bit tense lately.”
Sif flashed a gold coin at the guard.
The guard, pleased with his bribe, grinned and gave us some information.
“The Leech Gang caused a big incident recently. They tried to hide in the auction, and there was a huge clash between the auction guards and the security forces. That’s why things are so tense, so it’s best not to cause any trouble. You too, mister…”
“I’m just here to do business.”
“Everyone says that before causing trouble. And I’ll get scolded by the boss and have my pay docked. Sigh, I need a promotion…”
It was a common excuse.
No one ever admitted to planning to cause trouble.
“Can we go in now? I have something I want to buy…”
“Alright, alright. Go ahead. You folks too, enjoy your shopping.”
We finally made it to the auction.
I entered, feeling the two hands gripping mine tightly. In the game, the auction was a place where rare items were periodically sold. I wondered what it would be like in reality.
I had acquired mithril here, so I was certain there would be rare items…
I hoped they had what I was looking for.
“Okay, this is the auction. Never leave Johann’s side, okay? This place is crawling with criminals, so you could get hurt if you’re not careful!”
“You seem to be doing fine.”
“I have my ways.”
“Johann, look at that! It’s huge! Whose horn is that?”
I turned my head towards the stall Milia was pointing at. It was a simple stall, just a blanket spread out on the ground. But the items displayed on the blanket were quite interesting.
“…A minotaur horn.”
“Oh, you recognize it? You must have a lot of experience as an adventurer.”
“Just a little.”
I examined the minotaur horn, which was as thick as my arm, as I responded to the old man with a goatee. There were no major scratches, and the horn hadn’t discolored, indicating it had been extracted recently.
How did they even transport this thing?
“How did you transport it?”
“There are ways.”
Was it a trade secret? It was a tempting material… Should I buy it? It could be processed and used for various purposes.
“What’s the price?”
“50 gold coins.”
That’s expensive.
I didn’t know the market price, but it didn’t seem too bad. Should I put it on hold for now?
I would have to pass by this stall again on my way out anyway.
“I need to think about it.”
“Haha, do you know where else you can find such a high-quality item?”
“I’ll make a decision after I’ve looked around. Shopping requires careful consideration.”
“You better come back soon!”
We left the goatee behind and continued walking. There were still many stalls to check out. I didn’t want to waste money before finding the materials I needed and the item Elisa wanted.
“It’s a bit quiet today. Did they put up a rare item in the auction house?”
Sif, who was leading the way, suddenly spoke.
This was our first time at the auction, so we didn’t know if it was usually crowded or not. But Sif wouldn’t lie about something like this, so I asked her directly.
“Is it quiet?”
“Normally, there would be at least one or two people at each stall, even if it wasn’t as crowded as a regular market. But it’s a bit empty today. Usually, it’s because there are no valuable items, or the gangs are at odds with each other, or everyone’s gone to the auction house because a very rare item is being auctioned. It’s one of those three.”
A rare item, huh.
That piqued my interest. I was curious about what kind of items were considered rare here.
“Sif, when does the auction usually start?”
“About an hour after the auction opens? It usually starts around that time, so we can take our time looking around.”
“Th-The auction… I-It’ll probably be, be crowded… B-But, I-I still want to, to go…”
“Johann, can we go to the auction? It sounds fun!”
Milia showed great interest in the word “auction.” She seemed curious. Elisa also seemed interested in going.
Since no one objected, it wouldn’t hurt to check out the auction house.
“Then let’s slowly browse the stalls and head towards the auction house.”
“Hmm, in that case, there’s a place we need to stop by before we go.”
I looked at our money-loving guide at her words.
Sif grinned mischievously, miming putting something over her head.
“We need to hide our identities, right?”
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[Your Text Here]
Thanks for the chapter!
I wonder how much money he has right now.